higher education

Christian students from across Britain have prayed for courage to engage in activism and mission at the end of the annual conference of the Student Christian Movement (SCM), which took place in Derbyshire this weekend.

Christian students from across Britain are gathering in Derbyshire this weekend to explore “spirituality, vocation, activism and mission”. The weekend forms the annual conference of the Student Christian Movement (SCM).

There has been an angry response to the government’s admission that only 4% of people from the poorest backgrounds go to university, while life expectancy in the richest parts of the UK is 13 years longer than in the poorest parts.

Financial cutbacks by the Church of England could leave two south coast universities as the only universities in England with no Anglican chaplain. The Diocese of Winchester is considering axing the posts in response to a budget deficit.

Hundreds of student activists from across Britain have spent the weekend in Manchester exploring their response to climate change and corporate power, after a year that has seen a resurgence in student activism at universities around the country.

Research has revealed a “postcode lottery” of educational achievement, with the gap widening between the best and worst ares. This is despite the £1.9 billion spent on widening university participation since 2005.

Ministers are facing a strong challenge to their plans to privatise student loans, with academics and student campaigners criticising the proposals. The policy is part of a wider government plan to sell off around £3 billion worth of assets.

If there's anything more disheartening than this week's report on social mobility, it's the government's response to it. Their timid proposals for higher education are unlikely to do anything to challenge the way that the education system functions to maintain privilege and inequality.

A new report commissioned by the Church of England says that university and college chaplains are making an important contribution to educational life and calls on Higher Education Institutions and the government to back them.